A/N: Hey! Just a little heads-up! When you get to the part when all the words are italicized and are in the middle, that's Y/n's mental thoughts. I just wanted to let you guys know, so you're not confused. Also, read the A/N at the bottom. Please and thank you! Enjoy!
"Please be here...please be here...please be here..." I keep mumbling over and over, as I look around for Marco.
After watching the strange Titan fight other Titans for a little bit, we finally move one step closer to the supply room.
We're all in the room directly above the supply room, trying to come up with a plan of how to get down there without getting anyone killed, since we have no gas.
"Come on. You've got to calm down." I hear Marco console. I look in the direction I heard him from and see him trying to calm a worrisome Daz down.
"We're going to die here, Marco!" Daz cries out. "We're going to die!"
I'm quick to jog over and crouch down in front of him. "Hey. We're going to be fine, Daz. Armin and I are coming up with a plan to get us all out of here alive."
"And if their plan works, as they always do, we'll be getting out of here successfully." Marco adds, crouching down beside me.
"Their plans aren't going to work every time! There's no way!" Daz exclaims.
I sigh softly. "Listen to me. Armin and I put a lot of thought and consideration into our ideas and plans. If we don't think they'd work out, then we don't share them with anyone. We only want what's best for our friends. Nothing less."
"Hey..." He looks up at me. "Shouldn't you be with Armin, if you're supposedly coming up with a plan right now?"
"She's helping me in trying to get you to calm down." Marco replies. "She's multitasking right now."
I look at him with a small smile. "Actually, I'm not." I look back at Daz. "We just sent Jean and a few others to go look for something that could be of use against those Titans, so we're waiting for them to get back."
"It's not like they're going to find anything useful! Our blades are our best thing against them right now and we don't have the gas to use them!" Daz sobs.
"Just..." I lay a hand on his shoulder. "Just try and be optimistic for all of us right now, ok?"
He just turns around and starts tugging on his hair. "That Titan should've eaten me while it had the chance..."
I sigh and stand up. Attempting to calm Daz down is about as useful as standing out in the open on a field full of Titans with no gear on. He's always finding something to worry about.
"I think it'd be best if we left him alone right now." Marco remarks quietly, as he stands up beside me.
I nod. "Yeah...I think that too."
"Thank you for trying to help me out anyways." He thanks.
I shrug, as my cheeks start to get a little warm. I'm glad that the lighting isn't too good in here. "I-I didn't really do much."
"You did something." He replies and starts looking around the room. "And that was enough."
"Is everything okay?" I ask.
"Huh?" He looks down at me. "Oh, yeah. I was just looking for an empty spot for us to sit. Come on. I found one." He starts walking away, making me follow him.
I think while we're waiting for Jean and the others to get back, I should tell Marco my feelings, since there might not be another chance to tell him...
Thinking about telling him is making me feel a little nervous. Just...how am I suppose to go about telling him? I've never done anything like this before. I mean, I am only fifteen. I'm going to end up screwing this-
"Uh-" I bump right into Marco's back. "Sorry about that. I was just...thinking."
He lets out a soft chuckle, as he turns around. "You're fine. Go on and take a seat."
I also chuckle softly and rub the back of my neck, as I sit down against the wall and he sits down beside me.
He lead us over to a quiet corner, that isn't too far away from Armin, which is good. I mean, if something is found that could possibly help us, I'll be able to get over to Armin quickly to maybe form a plan.
"So...how'd you guys manage to ride a Titan here?" He asks. "That's not something people normally do."
"Well, we noticed that it was only taking out Titans. I mean, Mikasa was right in front of it and it still went after another Titan. Anyways, after it took out two more Titans, we thought he'd head straight here, since there were hardly any other Titans around, so...that's basically what happened." I explain.
"Let me guess, you or Armin thought of it?" He questions.
I nod. "Armin did and began telling us his idea and I quickly caught on and agreed to do it. Mikasa agreed once he fully explained, but it still took a little time in convincing Connie, but we're all here now and that's all that...matters." I pull my legs up to my chest and hug my knees.
"Is something wrong?" He asks, leaning forward slightly.
Yes...something is wrong. All of us aren't here. None of our fallen comrades are here with us. Everyone, except Armin, in my squad isn't here. Not Milieus...
"Y/n?" He questions.
Not Nack...
"Are you okay?" He sounds concerned.
Not Thomas...
He suddenly grabs one of my hands. "Are these scratches from when you landed in the glass? Some of these are pretty deep..."
Not Mina...
He switches his gaze from my hand to my face. "Do you want me to bandage your hands for you?"
Eren...
He carefully grabs my other hand and looks directly at me. "Please answer-"
I let out a small sob. I hadn't even realized I was crying until I sobbed. I guess I was holding my emotions back for too long.
"I'm so sorry!" He apologizes. "Was it something I said?"
"No..." I choke out. "I-It's my pent-up emotions."
"Oh..." He starts. "Why were you holding them in?"
I sniff. "If I broke down out there, I would've been eaten for sure. Actually...it probably would've been better if I wereeaten...I deserve it..."
"Please don't say that." Marco pleads. "No one deserves to be eaten...you don't deserve to be eaten."
I straighten my legs out and look at my lap. "Ok, but I still could've helped them from getting eaten, but...I was too scared to do it. I hesitated in trying to save them, Marco. I'm worthless..."
He sighs. "Things like this don't make you worthless. Personally, I don't think a person can be worthless. We've all been born for some cause, right?"
Without thinking, I just lean my body over, so that I'm able to lay my head on his shoulder. If I wasn't feeling so emotionless, I'd probably be very flustered right now. "I guess so..."
As I had laid my head on his shoulder, I felt his body tense up just for a second, but it then immediately relaxed. He soon rested his head against my own. I feel all warm inside and...I like it.
"Marco..." I say, looking around the room to make sure no one is eavesdropping. Here goes nothing, I guess.
"Hm?" He hums in a questioning tone.
I take in a quiet but deep breath. "I...I want you to know that you mean a lot to me."
Once again, I feel him stiffen up, but instantly relax. "You mean a lot to me as well. More than you know."
I slowly lift my head up, making him lift his too, and look at a him with extremely warm cheeks. "You do realize in what way I'm saying you mean a lot to me, right?"
He nods. "Yeah. Just...why me when you could go for literally any other guy? I mean, it's not a secret that you're quite beautiful. Have you not noticed when you enter a room, most eyes go-"
"Marco..." I grab one of his hands. "You've always been so helpful and kind to me ever since I first met you. Like, when we would clean up everyone's trays after dinner and then you'd walk me to my lodging area. You'd always let me rant about the littlest things to you and you'd just listen to me. No matter what. You've really caught me under your charm."
I sigh. "I'm really scared for what we've gotten ourselves into since we joined and I'm scared right now. With Titans loose all over town, I figured..." I hang my head. "I figured this would probably be my last chance to tell you..."
"I- wow..." He breathes out, looking as flustered as I am. "That's a lot to take in, but I guess I'll tell you that I've liked you since pretty early on. Jean would always bring it up and get me all embarrassed. I'm guessing this is what you've been wanting to tell me, right?"
I couldn't be more happy right now that he feels the same, as I do for him. I raise my head back up and nod. "Mhm. I got interrupted though. I'm surprised no one interrupted me this time."
He chuckles softly and looks out in front of him with a small smile. "To be honest, I've been wanting to tell you too, but I never had the guts to do so. So, I'm glad you did."
I cover my mouth, as I bite back the small laugh I have ready to burst out. Then, I go solemn. "Just...promise me something, ok?"
He nods. "Sure. What is it?"
I lay my head back on his shoulder. "Please be careful when we get back outside."
"I am careful, but I'll be sure to be more careful. I promise." He replies, laying his head against mine again. Then, it goes silent between us.
"Good news!" Jean's familiar voice exclaims soon after, making both of us perk our heads right back up. Jean, along with everyone that was with him, are back with crates in hand. I'm glad that it appears they found something for us.
"Courtesy of the Military Police!" He looks down at the crate he's holding. "And covered with a layer of dust, it's shotguns."
I immediately put a hand under my chin. "Hmm..."
"Are you already coming up with an idea?" Marco asks, standing up and holding a hand out for me to grab.
"Working on it..." I reply and grab his hand for him to help pull me up. "It's time for Armin and I to brainstorm."
⚡⚡️⚡⚡⚡
"Are you two absolutely sure buckshot is the way to go?" Jean asks, as he loads the gun. "It seems like we might as well throw spit wads. I mean, come on, guys. Are guns even effective against Titans?"
It didn't take Armin and I too long to come up with something to do and we're explaining the plan to everyone else, at the moment.
Armin shrugs. "I don't know, but they're bound to be better than nothing."
I nod firmly. "That's right. It's good that you guys found them so quickly too. We've got to take back the supply room, so we can get back out there and kill more Titans."
"Alright." Mikasa remarks from our left. "So, how many are down there?"
"We're looking at seven Titans of the four-meters-tall variety." Armin answers. "If we time this perfectly, this much ammo should be enough to do the trick."
A firm hand, that I know as Reiner's, is laid on my shoulder. "How exactly have you two planned out how we go about doing this?"
"Well, step one: We lower a group into the area via lift to get all of the Titan's attention." I explain.
"Step two: When the Titans come within range, the group fires in all directions simultaneously, blinding them." Armin continues. "Then the hard part. The moment of truth. Before the Titans have time to recover, seven of us swoop down from the ceiling and strike their vital regions."
I sigh, but it almost sounded silent. "And that's it. That's our plan. All our lives are on the line here. If we screw this up, we're dead. I know, it's a hell of a risk for just one attack, but we believe it's our only chance."
"Seven people have to slay seven Titans in one blow at the same time." Armin continues. "We're going to need the best of you. The seven soldiers most physically gifted and adept with paring blades. You'll be the difference between life and death for the rest of us. I'm sorry. That's how it is."
I stand up from sitting beside Armin. "The seven we think best fit these characteristics are Mikasa, Reiner, Bertolt, Annie, Jean, Connie, and Sasha."
"It sounds like a good plan to me, Doll." Reiner says, agreeing with the plan. I nod at him with a soft smile.
"When you get right down to it, the risk is the same for everyone." Annie remarks from behind Reiner. "It doesn't really matter who goes."
"Look." Armin starts. "I-I can't speak for Y/n, but I'm sure she feels the same, but I-I'm willing to be talked out of this. One half-baked strategy can't be our only option, right?"
I get on my knees beside him again, laying a hand on his shoulder. "I do feel the same. I keep feeling like there's some other way to go about doing this, but I can't pin it down exactly..."
"Don't be so hard on yourselves." Marco says, then lets out a soft chuckle. "Come on! With this being our only option, it's been pretty well thought out, especially with what we're looking at. If we give it our all, we'll most likely get through this!"
"Thank you, but-" I start.
Mikasa suddenly crouches down in front of Armin and I and lays a hand on our shoulders. "It'll be fine. You both just have to be confident. You two have always been better strategists than you give yourselves credit for."
In unison, Armin and I both hum in confusion and look at her with wide eyes.
"I'm serious." She continues. "Those sharp minds have saved Eren and I more than once."
"When did we ever save you?" Armin asks.
I nod. "Yeah. I mean, you and Eren always saved us, not the other way around. I don't under-"
Suddenly, there's a metallic clang that made me jump. Then, I realized that the lift is now ready.
"Alright!" A guy yells. "The lift's ready to go! The guns are loaded to the stocks! Let's go kill some Titans!"
Mikasa helps Armin and I up. "You two didn't realize it at the time. We'll talk about it later."
"Uh-" I follow her a very short distance with my hand outstretched, before putting it down. "Ok..."
"Come on." Armin grabs my wrist. "People are loading on already."
I nod. "Let's do this!"
So, Armin and I get behind the line of people and eventually get our shotguns and get on the lift, ending up on either side of Marco.
"Marco?" I tap his shoulder.
He looks down at me. "Yes?"
"Are you okay with giving the commands?" I ask. "I feel like you're the best one to do it."
He nods. "Yeah. I'm sure you, Armin, or anyone else would do fine, but I'll do it."
I adjust the gun against my shoulder, but keep it lowered. "Thank you."
He does the same as I just did. "You're welcome."
I really hope this works out, because if it doesn't, then...we're all dead and our dreams of seeing the sea...will be gone forever.
A/N: Hey, cadets! Well...Y/N FINALLY TOLD MARCO HER FEELINGS WITHOUT GETTING INTERRUPTED! AHHH!!! I love writing the interactions between the two :3
I'm sorry if it feels like I'm writing Marco too much (in my opinion, not enough. F in the chat). I'm just trying to get as many moments as possible with him, before his certain scene comes up. I'll have Y/n interacting more with the other guys afterwards...I promise.
If you all ever have any questions about this book or even me (you know, nothing that's too personal though) then feel free to ask! I kind of want to do a Q&A.
Anyways, I hope you all are enjoying this book as much I'm enjoying writing it. Have a wonderful rest of your day/evening/night! Bye, cadets!